Peaceful Turmoil
by Writing Fairy
Summary: Raeliesha and her dragon Briam finally decide neutrility isn't exactly their thing. They divulge their existance and, since grudges run deep, they extend a hand to The Varden. One question left: Can they trust each other? DIS:I don't own Eragon. I wish.
1. Living Through This

_A/N: (Hello! I am Writing Fairy and this is my fourth fanfic. I'm a big Eragon fan and cannot _wait_ for the next book! So, instead of going insane, I've decided to try and quench my thirst for the book by writing a fanfic. Hopefully this will help. I've written two for POTC and one for Harry Potter and never got many reviews or much feed back. I'm hoping I get a bit more with this one! Please read and review! Thank you for taking time out of your day to read this! Laterz, -Writing Fairy-)_

**Chapter 1, Living Through _This_ **

Raeliesha patted Briam's snout as he patted his feet impatiently amongst the soft ground. Briam snorted, fire swirling out of his nose in anger. Raeliesha jammed his head down so his snout was parallel to the ground, scowling.

"You know better. If one of these trees catches fire you could burn the whole forest down." She chastised the lush green dragon.

He snorted, _Why are we here? This is pointless! _

"You dragons need to learn the meaning of the word 'patience'." Raeliesha commented dryly. "You're all hot heads, every one of you."

Briam shifted agitated. Only Raeliesha was allowed to say something like that to him. If anyone else said it they'd've been fried to a crisp before the sentence was finished. But he couldn't fry her. It'd kill him, not only physically, but mentally as well. He'd never say it, but he'd do anything for that young wildfire. _Would you mind telling me what we're waiting for at least! _He asked, leaning down to gaze at her out of his large forest colored eyes.

She stared back with her own peculiar violet ones. "Just trust me, alright B?" Her gaze immediately trained back to the wide enclosure where he knew that other Rider and his dragon was, so Briam looked too. Eragon? Was that his name? If it was that was the Rider. The dragon's name...another dragon! He had tried so hard to conceal his excitement from his own Rider but it was hard. _Saphira_. What a beautiful name. She was a beautiful color...such a compliment to his own...

Raeliesha smirked and he snorted, _What!_

"Saphira, Saphira, Saphira! That's all I'm hearing my dear friend. You say her name anymore and I'd say you're obsessed." Raeliesha mocked playfully.

Briam nudged her and she flashed a grin as she dodged just in time to keep her balance. But she couldn't really blame him. She wanted to meet that Rider just as bad as he wanted to meet his dragon. Another Rider. The thought made her giddy. She hissed as she thought of the _other_ Rider. _Galbatorix_. He had brought her and Briam together so she felt like she owed him something but she despised everything he did and stood for. The thing that she had needed more than anything else was a good Rider. Another Rider. It would mean she could stop hiding. She and this Rider, Eragon, could band together against the tyrant and they'd be safe. Maybe even save Murtagh along the way. She and Briam had somehow managed to stay neutral throughout this entire conflict but Raeliesha was unsure if she wanted to be so indecisive anymore. Eragon and Saphira were fighting tooth and nail for something better. Isn't that what she wanted too? Rider and dragon had watched the entire preceding battle from their hiding spot along the forest, behind The Varden's camp. Galbatorix had certainly sunk low indeed. She knew he wasn't much for leaving his palace of imprisonment, as she had so often called it, but sending a green Rider? One with supposed less experience than the one they were up against? That seemed highly foolish. Yet Murtagh had held his own fairly well. But then again Eragon had been completely wiped. It was a very unfair match. She had foreseen everything, just barely managing to hold back Briam from diving head first into the battle. She had felt the blood lust too but she was better at controlling her emotions than her hotheaded dragon. Sometimes. Eragon had much to learn still, it seemed. Some of which she could most likely teach him, but he'd have to learn quick. Very quick indeed...

Her fingers strayed to her pointed ears and ran through her long auburn hair. She was part elf part human. It was forbidden. _She_ was forbidden. Or rather, she was the result of a forbidden love. Her mother was an elf, her father was a human. And to be honest she was more elf but their were definite humanistic characteristics to her. She was definitely not as laid back as most elves. Raeliesha had always been the type that had to keep herself busy, doing something _meaningful_, not laying around all day doing what she pleased. Unlike those lazy son of a guns she had things she had to do. Responsibilities. Yet she looked completely and utterly like an elf. Everything about her facial features and body echoed that of elven society. She spat on the ground. It was sheer torture. That's what it was. Her parents had damned her to a half-life. She stuck out like a sore thumb with the humans and was rejected by personality with elves.

_I am tired of waiting! _Briam complained.

"Me too." Raeliesha murmured into the wind. Briam quieted. It was then that he realized that this wasn't her idea of how she wanted to spend her day either. He surveyed the bodies still laid in random heaps. This had been a bloody battle. One for the history books, no doubt.

"Finally!" Raeliesha exclaimed tearing through some brush. Briam looked out towards a tent and saw the back of a young man, he seemed drained, leaning against the tent for support. But the dragon wasn't surprised. That was quite a battle the man had been through.

_Wait_.

"I'm done waiting Briam!" Raeliesha protested, whirling around to challenge the dragon. "There he is. Now is the time to make our move!"

_So what? You're just going to walk up and say 'Hello. I'm another Rider'. What an entrance. _Briam sniffed, smoke swirling around Raeliesha's head.

She swatted at the swirling silver mist and smirked, "I take it you've got a better idea."

_Obviously. _

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Eragon grasped Roran's shoulders. "And the answer to your question, brother, is yes. I will help you rescue Katrina. And then, together, you and I shall kill the Ra'zac and avenge our father."

Roran nodded his silent thanks, smiled, and walked off to his own tent. Eragon left the tent to go and tend to Saphira as best he could for the moment when his gaze strayed to the sky but what he saw..was completely...impossible!...it couldn't be! His attention suddenly snapped to a large green patch floating above the tents. There was no way! Heads were turning all across camp to see the...the _dragon_ flying over head. It wasn't Murtagh or Galbatorix, that had been his first worry, but this dragon was _green_. Another Rider? He thought wildly. Saphira was by his side instantaneously.

_Do you see... _She asked unsure of her sanity.

"Yeah. I see it." He replied completely dumbfounded.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

_I do like this way better. _Raeliesha commented to Briam as they swirled around and around, sinking lower and lower to the ground. Briam was a large dragon, a couple sizes bigger than Saphira, so they had to land farther away than they would have liked but the effect was dramatic enough.

_I told you,_ Briam sniffed_, we dragons _do_ know how to make a good entrance. _

Raeliesha shook her head, grinning, as she slipped off the saddle she had made for him. She had learned that dragon scales hurt like hell the hard way. Briam furled his wings in close to his body and walked forward with his Rider.

"Eragon" Raeliesha called out. She could see that Eragon was taking this sudden bout of information with difficulty. "I suppose it is time we had a chat, is it not?" She surveyed the surrounding area, "It's rather necessary I believe. After living through _this_ there are many things to talk about, if I'm not mistaken."


	2. Pasts and Prejudices

_A/N: (**"Computers are as addictive as alcohol, it's causing physical disabilities as well, such as eye strain and back ache." The psychologist informed Mr. McCoy sadly. "That's no reason to commit murder." The prosecutor commented firmly. The psychologist looked at him and responded dubiously, "That's what they said about Twinkies until jurors bought it." **This is a totally awesome quote from Law and Order from I LOVE LENNIE month! I'm gonna have to get one from Lennie maybe...I mean, since it _is_ I LOVE LENNIE month! Anyway, sorry. I'm watching L&O as I'm writing this, so sorry if it's kinda boring. I have to get through all the past stuff before I can return to the awesomely coolio story. So, thanks for taking the time out of your day to read this! Laterz, -Writing Fairy- Oh, and thank you all SOOO much for your reviews and adding me to alerts and favorites, it really means a lot!) _

**Chapter 2, Pasts and Prejudices **

Eragon's gaze fell on Raeliesha hard, taking her in completely, from her worn leather shoes to her scuffed black pants and fitting black shirt. She had the enticing and mysterious beauty of the elves in every graceful contour of her face and lithe body. His eyes rested on her deeply soulful violet ones and strayed momentarily to her silky auburn hair. Both Briam and Saphira were standing just outside the front of the tent, their large forms casting shadows over the candle that lit the conversation going on within.

"Another Rider." Eragon commented slowly.

"Who'da thunk it." She drawled. He just looked at her, "Sorry. I got over this a while ago. I know it's quite a shocker for you." She leaned back in her chair and tiredly closed her eyes. "Would you like me to just give you an overview of myself?" She finally asked, tired of the silence. She may have looked like and elf but she sure didn't have their interminably and excessively patient nature. She seemed perfectly human beyond her beauty. This was just getting stranger and stranger...

Eragon sat down, opened his arms and said, "Be my quest."

She opened her unusual violet eyes and started, "My name is Raeliesha Crescent, daughter of Erik Crescent, someone that I never knew." She spoke in the ancient language and Eragon was surprised at her complete willingness to be completely and utterly honest with him, it was as if she was on a mission to make trusting her easier, "My mother's name was Alicia, a healer and an elf in Galbatorix's palace." Eragon flinched, she ignored him and continued, her voice nondescript, "I was a maid there for many years. It was one day as I was coming into a drawing room to serve food and drink to Galbatorix and his guest as well as doing some off hand cleaning that an oddity occurred. I believe he was with Morzan, but I am not altogether sure." Eragon's eyes widened and he looked at her intently. The son of Morzan, it was all confirmed now, in her mind anyway. "The two were arguing about something or another, I don't very well remember. I was too absorbed with the round object on the table I had been ordered to clean. It was a pure shade of emerald green and was the most beautiful center piece I had yet to encounter in the entire palace." Raeliesha smirked, apparently laughing at her own stupidity, but Eragon knew the feeling. When he had first encountered Saphira's egg he had though it was an stone he could barter, "I touched it, intending to pick it up, clean under it, and go away, but it quaked as soon as my fingers grazed the object and I nearly dropped it. Morzan kept yelling whatever the two were arguing about but Galbatorix's attention immediately turned to me. The object quaked again, this time I wasn't as caught off guard but it was definitely a shock. Suddenly I heard Galbatorix's voice in my head, Take it and go, he said. I was unsure and again I heard, Take it and go. I fled the room. It wasn't too much later that the egg hatched. My mother found out almost immediately, and, fearing I would be swayed to the dark side, she used every ounce of magic she had in her to transport me far away. To this day I am not sure where I was. I wandered for days until I came upon a city, but by then I was delirious from heat, starvation and dehydration. I do not recall the name of the city. It wasn't until many years later that my fears where confirmed: my mother was dead. The rest of my life was rather typical." She let out a hollow laugh, "For a Rider anyway. My dragon and I developed together and I perfected my magic." She finished lightly. Then she leaned forward, her arms resting on the table as she said, "You may ask what you wish Shadeslayer."

Eragon was caught off guard by her peculiar language and straight forward attitude. She spoke with a blunt blatancy that had an authority to it that he had been trying to achieve for years. It wasn't something he was used to. And, to add to it, her language was very foreign and extremely diverse. It had an elven touch to it with a bit of an Alagaesian hint added in, but there was something underlying that he could not identify. Her voice had an almost fanciful story telling lilt to it that mesmerized him. The words came out gracefully and she stumbled over not a single word. The vowels were oddly pronounced and rather sped over, she almost completely skipped over the y's and pronounced many words with a touch of breathiness. Yet the words came out firm and important. It was the oddest lingo he had ever heard, but created an interest in him that even he didn't altogether understand, "How old were you?"

"I was ten." was her easy response.

"How old are you now?" He quizzed rather shocked at her early age.

"Sixteen." She admitted, "Just a few months younger than yourself."

"You've been a Rider for a long time." Eragon observed. She looked older than he did though, which caused him to wonder if she was lying perhaps. But that would mean she'd been a Ryder for even longer, pending on if she was telling the truth-

"I'm not lying. Fending for yourself half your life tends to cause you to mature faster. You don't look like much of a boy yourself." Raeliesha hastened to say almost sarcastically. Eragon looked at her in shock. He hadn't even felt her presence! "I'm sorry." She muttered sheepishly, "I have a knack for getting in people's heads."

"Do you mind if I..." He trailed off, gesturing that he'd like to see just how strong her mental barrier was.

"Go right on ahead." She allowed nonchalantly. She didn't steel herself. She didn't strain herself. Not a single look of concentration crossed her face.

Eragon nearly laughed at her naive attitude. She wasn't the only one who was stronger than she looked. He felt out for her presence and found her aura rather quicker than he had thought. Her mind was much like Arya's, foreign with a curious mystery to it that caused him to want to know more. It almost seemed like she didn't have any mental barrier at all, but as he made to find out anything about her past, to see if she was "lying" in that elven way, an intolerably awful pain filled his entire body and the next thing he knew he was back in his own head and staring up at her from an odd and painful position on his spine lying on the hard ground. He was kicking himself, he should have known better...

_Eragon! _Saphira growled, her head snaking in concerned.

_What did you do Raeliesha? _Briam accused.

"Nothing." She remarked innocently.

"I'm fine Saphira." Eragon breathed.

_If you're sure... _Saphira responded uneasily, glaring at Raeliesha.

"I'm positive. I got what was coming to me." Eragon assured her, propping himself up on his elbows.

_I hope that wasn't on purpose... _Briam trailed off watching his Rider closely. Raeliesha just gave him that same innocent look and they left saying nothing more.

She grinned and offered a hand. "Sorry bout that. Nothing personal." He stood up, taking the proffered hand and eyeing her wearily as she pulled him to his feet, his head spun slightly and he felt rather dazed. "Alright, maybe it is. But I've been hiding from Galbatorix so long..." She trailed off with a sigh. They were silent for a moment. It was rather awkward but Eragon couldn't help it. This _Rider_ was one hell of strong with a dodgy past to boot. Just what he needed right then. Suddenly she flashed a grin and confessed, "I'm a lousy shot though." They both laughed. It was just so random, neither of them had really had many laughs in a long time and anything even remotely funny had to be taken advantage of at all costs.

"May I ask you something?" Eragon ventured.

"Please, go right on ahead." She shrugged.

"You are allowing me to ask you all these questions about yourself, perhaps so I can trust you, yet you haven't asked me a single question about myself. Why not?" He couldn't help but ask, it was rather odd, she hadn't asked him a single question. Not one.

She laughed, a light sound that his ears welcomed. It was a full yet sweet laugh that he, for some reason unknown to him, really liked. "Oh but Eragon, I already trust you. After everything I have witnessed you go through, after what I have heard from Angela and Solembum, I need not evidence of your loyalty." She said dismissively in that peculiar way of hers.

"You know Angela?" Eragon inquired curiously. This girl was becoming more of a curiosity with every question answered. There always seemed to be one more thing to ask for each question answered with every coming response.

_She will not go away Raeliesha. _Briam informed her solemnly.

_He will not let her in. _Saphira added angrily.

"Do you know who Briam is speaking of?" Raeliesha turned to him interestedly.

"Eragon!" A voice called angrily through the closed flap of the tent.

"Lady Nasuada." Eragon sighed, berating himself mentally. The first thing he should have done was report to his liege lord.

_Briam, let her in!_ Raeliesha scolded her dragon.

_How do we know if she's safe-_ He argued.

"Briam, _now_." She ordered aloud, pulling aside the cloth to allow the woman in. She was tall, with dark chocolate colored skin. Her almond eyes surveyed the newfound Rider in shock and disbelief. "Hello, I am-" But she was cut off as Raeliesha's head snapped toward the front of the tent.

_There is another_. Briam added monotonously a second later. _An elf._

"Stop it Briam. Let her in." She demanded. "I apologize about Briam. He is rather overprotective. Worse than a mother, I swear. He can breathe fire, fly, and rip anything into pieces with his talons, he seems to think it makes him my keeper." She smirked. Then her attention turned to the elf that had just entered. She had long ginger colored hair and light blue eyes and looked very familiar. "Arya." She greeted, inclining her head slightly.

"Raeliesha." Arya responded studying the half elf with curiosity. "You've come far from the little girl that loved to listen to me tell stories." Arya laughed lightly and that's when Eragon realized that Raeliesha's laugh was also another foreign combination. Who was this girl?

"I have, haven't I?" Raeliesha conceded with a sigh, "It's nice seeing you again, Arya Svit-kona. Very nice indeed."

"I don't understand." Nasuada interrupted, "You two know each other?"

"In a way." they insinuated together with a look.

Nasuada shook her head and turned to Eragon, "And why did you not inform me of..." She looked at me apologetically, "I'm sorry, I don't believe I caught your name..."

"Raeliesha. Raeliesha Crescent." She introduced.

"It's nice to meet you." Nasuada greeted, "I'm Nasuada, son of Ajihad, Leader of The Varden."

"You're reputation precedes you my lady. I have heard much of you and your actions against Galbatorix." Raeliesha informed her, nodding her head in recognition.

"Raeliesha, I must ask, what has caused you to reveal yourself now?" Arya asked immediately.

Raeliesha studied the other elf momentarily before saying, "There was a long time when I felt alone. The Varden was not strong enough to defeat Galbatorix and I was too young to be of any assistance. Now I see that I was wrong. Maybe if I had taken a stand things would be different. But I did not." She said simply, "I would like to right those that I have wronged. Fix the terrible mistake I have made."

Nasuada glanced at her and asked slowly, "I hope you do not mind me asking, how have you stayed hidden for so long?"

Raeliesha grinned, "Between Du Weldenvarden, the Beor Mountains, and remote areas of the Hadarac desert I have managed to keep myself hidden. Oh, and of course the Spine. I daresay I'd be dead without it. Many people don't understand that there are many more places to hide than just what can be seen."

"Isn't that the point of hiding?" Eragon ventured quizzically.

"Right you are." She tipped at him.

"Do you plan to join the Varden?" Nasuada asked tensely.

Raeliesha gave her an odd look, "No, I'm going to leave the Varden's camp with all of you fully knowing I exist because I'm just here to mock you all so it'll hurt even more when I go speak to Galbatorix about coming on as his apprentice even though for all intensive purposes he is the reason both of my parents are dead and my kind has been scared into Du Weldon Varden in one of few elven cities, Ellesmera. So no, I'm not joining the Varden." Everything was silent, Eragon working hard not to fall over laughing. Her face was just so perfectly straight, it set the mood and made what she said even more sarcastically funny than it was before. He was about to burst when Arya beat him to it.

"And that's how we know you are not full elf Raela." Arya commented, her voice still ringing with her laughter.

"Please, rub it in." Raeliesha conceded dryly.

"You're not full elf?" Nasuada questioned curiously.

"I'm a Halfie." She muttered bitterly. Then she looked up suddenly, her expressive face completely apathetic, "Ya know, I've quickly learned that more than three and less than five is the worst crowd there is. Especially when three are tired, bloody, and injured. I believe we should finish this conversation tomorrow when we are all well rested." Her eyes were guarded and Eragon couldn't even imagine the pain he'd be in if he tried to breach her mind at that moment. Though he would've given quite a few things to find out what she was thinking.

"I suppose that is acceptable." Nasuada allowed reluctantly, unwilling to anger the new Rider before knowing she was fully on their side.

"Until the morrow." Raeliesha nodded, heading for the tent flap. "Briam, I'm leaving." She called quietly.

"Leaving?" Eragon repeated.

"To our cave." She clarified. "I will be back at sunrise tomorrow. No worries, Shadeslayer." Her hand reached for the tent flap when Arya called softly, "No one discriminates you for being the production of a forbidden love, Raela. I hope you know that." The Rider paused completely, a dark look crossing her face, "Tell that to those you have shunned me. To those who have whispered behind my back. Who have thought unkindly of me without knowing me. To those full bloods who have looked down on me because they saw themselves as my superiors simply because I'm a Halfie. Tell that to the elves." Her voice was steady but there was an underlying grudge to be heard in her words. She left and no one spoke until they heard the flapping wings of Briam soaring off into the night.

"I pity her." Arya spoke softly, "She is but a young one and has led such a hard life. A harsh life. A half life." She added after a moment. "Her mother was an elf. Her father a human. At the time it was completely forbidden. It was nearly twelve years later that it was deemed fine, not acceptable or good, but has been respected as something that happens. Twelve years is nothing in elven time, I think that is what angers her most. She was born just before elf/human relationships were fine." She paused and whispered softly, "She doesn't fit in with humans, she looks to much like an elf, she can't fit in with the elves, her personality is misunderstood. She fits in no where." She was silent for a moment, then added, her voice filled with a peculiar hardness, "That is what she believes anyway."

_That's sad._ Saphira reiterated.

"It is." Nasuada agreed quietly.

Eragon looked up with a determined expression on his face, "We'll just have to convince her that it's not true then, won't we?"


	3. Things You Don't Know

_A/N: (Okay, first off, I am SOOOO sorry for such a delay! I feel SOOOO awful...but I have been so busy...I'm giving up the time I SHOULD be doing my homework during to update this, so I hope you like it. I'm sorry it's not longer but everything has been so hectic lately...gr. Well, I hope you like this and have a great day! Happy Halloween everybody! Laterz, -Writing Fairy-)_

**Chapter 3, Things You Don't Know**

Briam landed lightly on the cliff with a cautiousness that made Raeliesha smile softly. It was at times like this that she could see Briam's affection for her. He wasn't a very expressive dragon except for when he was angry or impatient, she didn't think many dragons were very expressive to begin with anyway so she didn't think much of it. She slid off of Briam's back asking conversationally, "So, what's Saphira like?"

Briam plodded in the cave after her and watched as she lit the fire with the ancient word 'brisingr' before responding in a low growl, _She was bloody and weary from battle. I have no comments. _

"That's interesting." Raeliesha smirked with an odd expression on her face. But she knew better than to push it. When he had something to say, he'd say it.

_Arya._

"What about her?" His Rider asked trying to sound carefree as she pulled some vegetables and fruit out of her bag but her face went slack and he eyes caught a slight chill about them.

_I vaguely remember her. But I must have been but a hatchling. Who is she?_ Briam asked, purposefully ignoring to her discomfort on the subject.

She went quiet for a long time as she chopped up the various vegetables. Finally she brandished a pot, "Go get me some water and when you come back I'll tell you."

o-o-o-o-o-o

Eragon sat in his tent puzzling about the new Rider. This was all just so mind boggling.

_Stop fretting little one. It'll be better with another Rider on our side. _Saphira assured him but her mind was conflicted as well. Briam was an interesting character and Raeliesha seemed to be as well, but both dragon and Rider seemed very independent, which made her worry slightly.

"Raeliesha." He murmured aloud, "That isn't elven, is it?"

Saphira thought for a moment, _I don't believe so. But Arya called her Raela. That's very elven. _

Eragon went silent for a moment, just thinking. "Hmmm..." He finally murmured coming to a realization.

_What?_ Saphira asked curiously.

"I'm wondering if the reason Arya calls her that is to make her feel more at home among the elves." Eragon explained, "But Raeliesha. Where does that come from?"

_It is foreign to me. It seems before the time of the dragons altogether but I do not know how that is possible. _Saphira responded, sounding just as confused.

"And her accent." Eragon continued, "Have you ever heard anything like it?"

_No. I daresay it is unique to her._

"I want to go find her. I have a few more questions." Eragon muttered, severely wishing he had had more time with her, that Nasuada had come just a quarter of an hour later.

_I do not know if that we should intrude upon her at this moment._ Saphira warned.

"Do you know where this cave is?" Eragon inquired curiously, shrugging off her objection.

Saphira chuckled, _I believe everyone in camp does. _

"What?" He asked perplexed, diving out of the tent almost head first. He watched people walking around, obviously pretending to do something while sneaking glances over his head. He whirled around to see a flickering light inside of a cave in the closest mountain on the edge of the forest. He could've kicked himself.

"Saphira, would you take me up there?" He called back distractedly.

_Against my better judgment, I suppose so. _She conceded with a soft snort.

_Be quiet Saphira, we don't want to scare her. _Eragon told her as she made to land. They had just seen Briam go soaring into the cave, a bucket of water in his claws. Saphira, with her perfect sight, had told Eragon that you had to turn once you got in the cave so that if they landed on the ledge they wouldn't be seen unless they turned the corner. He had asked her why he needed to know that but she pretended like she didn't hear him.

_Don't treat me like I'm a hatchling._ Saphira snapped. She wasn't happy about any of this and she had made that severely clear on the short ride to the mountain. Arya had watched them leave shaking her head and when Saphira had pointed this out he had completely disregarded it, which only infuriated her more. She alighted softly on the tips of her claws making sure to jostle Eragon roughly. He tumbled off of her back and landed with a slight thump. Raeliesha's voice stopped for a moment, but he was relieved when he heard her foreign accent start up again.

"Thanks for the water." She thanked her dragon listlessly. He heard the pot jangle as she positioned it over the fire and a loud plop as she dropped something into it. Some type of vegetable he assumed.

_You said you would tell me._ Briam reminded in a low undertone.

"I suppose I did." She sighed softly. Everything went silent and Eragon stopped inching forward. Saphira had planted herself on the ledge, it went unsaid that she wasn't coming.

He heard Briam's claws digging into the ground impatiently before he finally demanded, _How do we know Arya!_

Briam had come back quicker than she would've like but her word was her word, so she sighed and began the tale, "Before my mother and I were captured and put into service for Galbatorix I knew Arya. We lived in Ellesmera and I remember always waiting for Arya to come back from wherever she went when she wasn't there." Her voice was quiet and sad, "She was the only one that accepted me as a child, I was just so different. Sure, I looked like the perfect little elf, but my personality contradicted my appearance. Arya didn't seem to mind. I'd catch up to her, wherever she was, and I'd ask her to tell me tales all the time. I'm pretty sure she got tired of it after the repeated occurrences, but she never turned me away. I think she understood that I wasn't exactly treated kindly so she tolerated me. And that was a first, so I became kind of attached to her for the time being." She shrugged and stirred the stew she was making before continuing, "It was then that Arya left and didn't come back for almost a year. I became seriously depressed and even more of an introvert than I ever was. My mother felt it was time that I saw a bit more of the world; I think she felt it would help, so she decided to take me on a trip. I was seven and a half then. It was a mistake. Galbatorix caught us and put us in his service. At the time his desperation to know where Ellesmera was wasn't at its peak but I soon realized he was trying to butter us up, giving us work and paying us decently while keeping us hostage as he tried to figure out the location of Ellesmera. Now and then he'd bring up where we had come from and my mother and I would clam up completely. We weren't going to tell him where we had come from, we knew his intent. I found your egg when I was nine and it hatched two days later, one day after I had turned ten, but you knew that. This you won't remember though." She looked up at his evergreen colored eyes and set down the wooden spoon she'd been stirring with, "We wandered for days after my mother magicked us out of that castle. I told you that some random elf assisted us back to Ellesmera." She gained a guilty look on her face as she averted her gaze, "It was Arya. She found us and brought us back to Ellesmera."

Her words rang in Eragon's ears. So she _hadn't_ mentioned everything. But how, if she had been taken back by Arya, had Briam been concealed? His hand slipped from its place on the wall, dislodging a stone pebble. Raeliesha's head snapped up immediately, gazing right where he was around the corner. He felt her presence in his mind and she delved in to find out who he was and what he had heard.

"Eragon." She called softly. He liked how she said his name, it was so compelling. He stepped forward, "I'm sorry. I came to find you and heard you talking. I didn't want to interrupt..." He dwindled off.

She shrugged and went back to her stew, "Hungry?" She asked holding up a bowl. It was then that he realized that he was _starving_, he hadn't eaten anything since before the battle. "I know you are, so don't lie." She grinned. He smiled and sat down across from her.

_I don't see why you are forgiving this..._interloper_...so easily. He was listening in on a conversation he had no right to hear. _Briam sniffed, fire swirling out of his nose.

"Quit it with the fire Briam. I mean it." Raeliesha warned, "One day you're going to fry somebody."

_I apologize, Raeliesha. I tried to tell him not to intrude._ Saphira gave Eragon a chiding look as she came ambling in.

"It is quite alright. You have a duty to your Rider just as he has one to you." She murmured, handing him a spoon. "And he apologized." She shrugged, taking a bite.

They ate silently for a few minutes, Eragon feeling embarrassed that he hadn't made his presence known earlier. He muttered a few ancient words almost silently to check for poison which made Raeliesha laugh, but she didn't say anything. His blush deepened. How had she known!

"You're mental barrier is very weak." She informed him with a smirk. "And it is natural for me to constantly scan everything around me. Granted, there aren't many people around usually..." They were all silent for a moment until she looked up and offered, "I could help you with that, ya know."

"You'd do that?" Eragon asked her, almost speechless.

"Sure." She shrugged. She paused for a moment before asking, "Could you do something for me? I will help you regardless of your response." She added.

"Of course." He agreed immediately, shocked at her readiness to help.

She looked almost embarrassed for a moment before asking in a small voice, "Could you help me with my aim?"

He almost laughed. He had thought she was joking! "Sure." He managed to spit out, trying to contain his laughter.

"Yeah, cuz I laughed at you and your weak mental barrier." She muttered, mock hurt.

"I'm sorry-" He started.

"You thought I was joking, I know." Her full red lips smiled at him nicely and her peculiarly mysterious violet eyes caught his and at that moment he was mesmerized.

"So just exactly how bad _is_ your aim?" Eragon asked curiously, shaking himself to knock himself out of the trance. Briam let out a snorting howl that sounded like he was laughing as Raeliesha blushed, "I couldn't hit a dragon's backside with a log from two feet away."

Now Eragon really couldn't help it, "And I thought that was a target that was nigh impossible to miss." He laughed.

_Hey!_ Both dragons chorused indignantly.

"Yeah, well, that's probably a good assessment of how bad I am." She mumbled.

Eragon grinned, "That's no worse than my ability to shield my mind."

She smiled appreciatively. "Now that that is settled, you came up here for a reason, would you like to inform me of such?"

Eragon thought about that. There really wasn't a specific reason beyond curiosity. "I just wished to talk. We were interrupted and didn't have much time to become acquainted or learn much about one another."

"Which is the key to us working together." She nodded. She took another bite and admitted, "I would like to know a bit more about the state of The Varden."

"Now that's something I can answer." He grinned. It seemed she was getting more comfortable as the minutes passed, she had finally asked _him_ a question! It was a miracle! So he went on to tell her about the army and how The Varden was hidden in one of the gigantic mountains -he didn't tell her where on second thought but he felt that he should've- he told her about Nasuada and the recent rulings, about King Orrin and King Hrothgar. There was much to tell and she sat there listening to his every word intently, her violet eyes focused on him alone. He even got into Murtagh and Roran and his Uncle Garrow. He didn't know why but he felt particularly comfortable with talking to her about all of this. She was just one of those people that you could just dump on when everything was just a lot. And she was a good listener, she nodded and made soft affirmatives and even asked some random rather rhetorical questions. He continued on for the longest time, just ticking everything off he could think of, about Brom and the Ra'zac and Queen Islanzadi and Ajihad and Glaedr and Oromis and it seemed his whole life accompanied most of his explanation just because one thing led to another which led to another which made this connection which reminded him of this experience. He talked for what felt like hours, Raeliesha soon began budding in with her own similar experiences and some new ones. They went back and forth, almost like a match of who's-gone-through-the-most-bull-as-a-Rider. Needless to say, Raeliesha won more often than not. But Eragon beat her the last time around because she had never battled another Rider. They looked up with confused expressions as they suddenly noticed that there was sunlight streaming through the cave and that Briam and Saphira were both snoring lightly on the cavern floor.

Raeliesha just tilted her head back and laughed. It was absolutely infectious and the whole situation _was_ rather hilarious. They had sat up all night talking. They hadn't even realized how late it had become. Or early, if you want to get technical.

When their laughter subsided Raeliesha commented, "I suppose we had both better get some rest."

"I agree." Eragon nodded, his voice hoarse from all of the talking. Her voice was still crystal clear though. He still didn't understand all that had occurred to him during Agaeti Blodhren, he almost thought he never would, but he had certain elf like qualities intermingled with his human qualities. It almost made his head spin, but then he thought of how she must feel being a ...what did she call herself?...oh, a Halfie. That was the term she had used. He had no idea how it felt being her. Knowing that he didn't fit in anywhere-

_Eragon._ Saphira interrupted his train of thought, she had apparently woken only moments before, _I believe that was our cue to leave. _She informed him slyly.

"Oh, yes, sorry." He murmured still thinking as he stood up. He wobbled slightly, his legs cramped up from sitting for so long. She stood up gracefully and extinguished the fire whispering simply, "Aderna." water pulled itself out of the stones around them and poured over the fire. Apparently she had the elven strength in magic, if not the personality of one.

She looked up to still see him standing there and she smiled, "If you wish to stay, you may. I know the moment you get down there you are going to be bombarded with tons of questions, and then strategies, and you still haven't rested as of yet." As she spoke she casually sat down and leaned on Briam, who opened a single green eye to gaze at her before shutting it contently, "I myself am exhausted. You must feel even worse. It is up to you." with that she crossed her legs and pulled a hat out of her pack, settling it on her head with a wink before pulling it over her eyes.

Eragon looked at Saphira who stretched and settled on the cave floor, _I could use with another nap. _He shrugged and copied Raeliesha, entering the dream-like trance he was only as of recently becoming use to.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Arya looked up at the cave concerned. Eragon had gone up to speak with Raela the night before and was no where to be found upon the sun rising the next day. She didn't like the looks of things. Had something happened to him upon his return to camp? Her movements became swifter as she headed toward the cave with a newfound vigor. She hoped nothing had happened to him.

She made it to the cave in record time. She had been able to follow a pretty wide ledge most of the way up, but after that she had had to climb part of the way which had taken longer, freeing her mind to come up with all of the worst scenarios that could have occurred. When she finally pulled herself up and walked into the cave she sighed with immense relief. There he was. Perfectly fine. Asleep. And there was Raela. Resting. She turned around to look at the camp from such a high perspective. It was bustling and alive, even in this early hour. The battle field was covered in blood and she shivered involuntarily. It was a great feat that they had won, the odds were bad, but they had managed. The Varden would get great recognition for such blatant rebellion, which is just what they needed.

"Arya, may I inquire as to what you are doing up here?" A soft voice asked from behind her.

"Raela." Arya acknowledged as the young girl came up next to her. "Eragon's disappearance worried a few."

Raela laughed softly, "Your Rider is fine, if over weary. His change makes everything the better."

Arya stared off into the rising sun uncertainly, "That is what everyone is telling me."


End file.
